Federal Programs Fall Directors’ Conference Embassy Suites Charleston, WV October 12-13, 2011

Effective Team Organization and Communication Lisa Youell State School Improvement Specialist

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Groups do not become teams by accident!

What Makes a Group a Team?  They all own shared goals  Members are interdependent  organized around a process, each performing a critical function required for success  They work collaboratively and purposefully to achieve the goals  There is accountability WITHIN the team

Improving Schools One Teacher at a Time Individual growth does not ensure organizational growth. Organizations need more than well- developed individuals. Effective leaders focus on developing the culture and the collective capacity of the organization. Center for Creative Leadership (2003) Michael Fullan (2007) Richard Elmore (2006)

Individual Growth Does Not Ensure Organizational Growth Student achievement gains and other benefits are influenced by organizational characteristics beyond the skills of individual staff. We saw schools with competent teachers that lacked the organizational capacity to be effective with many students. The task for schools is to organize human resources into an effective collective effort. Newmann and Wehlage,(1995)

Collaboration The purpose of collaboration--to help more students achieve at higher levels—can only be accomplished if the professionals engaged in collaboration are focused on the right work. Learning By Doing

Case Study Learning By Doing First edition: pages 89 – 91 Second edition: pages

Scenario The Principal of a middle school had worked tirelessly to promote collaboration and had taken a number of steps to support teachers working together: He organized each grade level into an interdisciplinary team. He created a schedule that gave teams time to meet together each day. He trained staff in collaborative skills, consensus building, and conflict resolution. He emphasized the importance of collaboration at almost every faculty meeting.

Teams Focused On… the behavior of a student who had become increasingly disruptive strategies for achieving their team goal of reducing disciplinary referrals for tardiness to class a lively debate about whether or not members should accept late work from students, and if so, how many points they should deduct for each day late roles and responsibilities of each member to ensure all the tasks associated with an upcoming field trip were addressed

What Advice Would You Give? How can we provide the parameters and framework to ensure teams use their collaborative team time in ways that have a positive impact on student learning?

What are your schools’ teams doing?

Administrative Team School Leadership Team Collaborative Team Focus Team(s) Student Assistance Team Local School Improvement Council

School Improvement Teams Defined Each of the teams described has multiple functions. This document outlines only those functions that apply to school improvement.  Read over the team descriptions and discuss at your tables.  Give us your feedback.

School Leadership Team Uses a distributed leadership model (sharing leadership responsibilities across the organization) to support the work of teacher collaborative teams. The leadership team is made up of school administrators, one member from each teacher collaborative team and others at the principal’s discretion.

Collaborative Teams Teachers are organized into collaborative teams on the basis of shared responsibility for addressing the critical questions of learning with a particular group of students – for example, by content, course or grade level. Team members work interdependently to achieve a common goal for which each member is mutually accountable.

Team Leaders’ Roles & Responsibilities What is the role of a team leader in your district? What are the responsibilities of a team leader in your district?

Roles & Responsibilities Table Jigsaw  Table distributes Roles and Responsibilities of Teams amongst members  Individually read assigned section:  half read School Leadership Team and Team Leaders  half read Collaborative Teams and Team members  All read the information in the box  Come back to whole group and share out the part that resonated with you

School Leadership Team… Takes a balcony view of the school Assists the principal in making decisions to govern the school (shared decision making) Ensures a focus on learning and continuous improvement Guides the work of the collaborative teams Supports and monitors the work of the collaborative teams Serves as the steward of the school’s mission, vision, core values (commitments) Monitors achievement, climate and satisfaction data to assure that the learning environment is producing results consistent with the school’s stated goals Identifies gaps in performance or processes and plans for their improvement Aligns school’s work with the district and classroom

Team Leaders Organize and facilitate all team meetings Must “communicate” with all team members and other teams Hold each team member responsible for the core tasks of the team Delegate the core tasks for equal distribution among team members Share in the workload of the team Extend support and encouragement to new members of the course/team – guide new team members to gradually increase participation in the team See that time frame deadlines are met by all members of the team Exhibit patience and a sense of humor Make a conscious effort of appreciation

The School Leadership Team seeks to build the collective capacity of collaborative teams of teachers… What do we need in order to conduct ourselves as a high functioning team? What do we expect all teachers to know and be able to do? How will we know when they are able to do it? How will we respond when teachers already know it? How will we develop first best instruction in our professional development and support of teachers? How will we respond when teachers are struggling? How will we know if our support is the stimulus for teacher’s professional growth?

Collaborative Teams… Focus on learning and continuous improvement Are responsible for service and program delivery – Standards – Assessment – Instruction Manage the day-to-day services provided to students – – Those who exceed – Those who meet – Those who do not meet Monitor achievement, climate and satisfaction data to assure that the learning environment is producing results consistent with the school’s stated goals Identify gaps in performance or processes and plans for their improvement Align team’s work with the district and classroom Align with grade level before and after

Collaborative Team Members… Are prepared for each meeting Guarantee security for shared assessments Develop assessments, and personalize others to their individual instructional style using shared resources as a guide Share assessments, materials and ideas with all team members Complete the assigned core tasks on time Provide voluntary participation and seek to help the team facilitator as needed Make a conscious effort towards appreciation of the team facilitator and other team members

School Leadership Team Collaborative Team Administrative Team

Leadership Roles Build: Trust Interdependent work structures From “Build, Promote, Guide, Provide, Monitor” by Susan Huff in The Principal as Assessment Leader

Leadership Roles Promote : From “Build, Promote, Guide, Provide, Monitor” by Susan Huff in The Principal as Assessment Leader Unwavering focus on student learning Precise academic standards High expectations Common curriculum Common assessments Confirmed instructional practices Systems of prevention & intervention

Leadership Roles Guide: Collaborative teams Job-embedded staff development Collective growth Inquiry Shared personal practice From “Build, Promote, Guide, Provide, Monitor” by Susan Huff in The Principal as Assessment Leader

Leadership Roles Provide: and manage data From “Build, Promote, Guide, Provide, Monitor” by Susan Huff in The Principal as Assessment Leader

Sharing Data: Beginning of Community Collecting data is the first step toward wisdom, but sharing data is the first step toward community. - Henry Louis Gates, Jr.

Leadership Roles Monitor: Student progress Reflective dialogue Tangible products From “Build, Promote, Guide, Provide, Monitor” by Susan Huff in The Principal as Assessment Leader

How do we do those things? Through “gentle pressure applied relentlessly.” Gerrita Postlewaite

How do we take the work of teams to the entire school district? “Communication refers to the extent to which the school and district leaders establish strong lines of communication with and between principals, teachers and students.” p. 46, School Leadership That Works: From Research to Results

School Administrative Teams School Leadership Team District Administrative Team

Communication “Without credible communication and a lot of it, change efforts are doomed to fail.” p. 20, Revisiting Professional Learning Communities at Work

Communication

Example of Effective Communication The focus of administrative meetings in most districts is on managerial tasks rather than on leadership issues that impact learning. A central office could, however use those meetings to help the district staff and principals function as their own collaborative team. p.361 Revisiting Professional Learning Communities at Work

Team Organization & Communication

An Internal Focus We make progress as a Team when we move from a language of complaint to a language of commitment, from a language of “they” to a language of “we,” from focusing on what we can’t stand, to focusing on what we stand for.

Collaborative Teams Network